orecchiette with spring herb pesto & sausage

04.29.2015

Were you a school lunch or a packed lunch kid? I was mostly a lunch-buyer growing up — I had my fair share of Lunchables on field trips and PB&Js in those fold-top plastic Ziplocs-without-Ziplocs, but my school lunch memories are dominated by plastic trays sliding along metal rungs, boat-shaped French bread pizzas, clammy and not quite melted in the center; paper cartons of chocolate milk and foil-capped orange sherbet; hard-shell tacos that I’d gleefully crush into a makeshift taco salad.

Probably because it was the one I did less, bringing lunch always seemed kind of optimal to me. Like if you got hungry before lunch and felt like sneaking food in your morning classes, you totally could — tiptoeing your hand into the maw of your unzipped backpack when the teacher wasn’t looking and shoving grapes, or baby carrots, or a hunk of sandwich into your mouth. In our circle there were two schools of thought — you could duck under your desk (oh where did I put my homework?!), chew furiously and swallow as fast as possible before you got caught. Or you could pop back up and opt for the hide-in-plain-sight, hand-over-mouth, deep-in-thought gaze as you tried to chew behind your palm. Both dubiously successful. Both totally worth the risk. High school was so exciting.

Anyway, back then I had a friend who, in addition to being a food-sneaking ninja, always seemed to have the really cool packed lunch, the kind that I imagine would have fit in with Amanda’s kids’ lunches before their time. I’m sure my intrigue was as much to do with my limited lunch universe of Wonder Bread and pretzel sticks as with her mother’s kitchen prowess, but I thought her mom was a lunch-packing wizard. I still remember one day — in class before lunch, obviously — when my friend pulled out a chicken sandwich and peered into it to reveal a smear of something I’d never seen before, herby and green and faintly pungent. It’s pesto, she told me when I asked, looking mildly surprised that I didn’t know. You know, like, basil and olive oil and Parmesan. Like what? I was so intrigued.

As it turns out, a little less than ten years (what) later, my sage high school friend is now a bridesmaid (!!) and the pesto she introduced to me is now one of my favorite sauces. The standard basil pesto has a balanced beauty that’s pretty impossible to beat, pungent garlic and brightly peppery basil tempered with earthy, savory Parmesan and crushed pine nuts, but with spring more or less here, I threw in a few handfuls of my favorite spring herbs to add a little extra liveliness (and used almonds, poor guys). Of course, you can use all basil (or any other herb, really) and pine nuts instead of almonds if you prefer. Also, I broke in a new mortar and pestle (thank you Adrianna for the amazing rec!) to make this and loved the difference in flavor by grinding it by hand as opposed to a food processor. I totally recommend trying it that way if you’re up for it — it’s a treat. I followed Valentina’s excellent mortar and pestle method for pesto here.

Finally, I paired the sauce with our go-to chicken sausage and my favorite homemade pasta, Kathryn’s perfect orecchiette. It’s the first homemade pasta I ever made, way back sometime in 2013, and it’s by far the most enjoyable of the handmade pastas I’ve tried, especially since I don’t have a machine. No sweating or cursing or tricep workouts necessary, just a sunny worktable, a blunt knife and some time. Like Kathryn says, there’s something magical about it — that all you need is flour, water (not even eggs!) and a little bit of kneading to make actual, real pasta you can eat, silky but toothsome, with just the right amount of chew. (Plus, the little ears are kind of the cutest.)

To make the orecchiette: Stir together the dry ingredients on a clean work surface (or in a large bowl). Make a well in the middle and pour in half the water. Use your fingers to bring everything together into a dough, adding the remaining water bit by bit.

Knead for five minutes until the dough is elastic. Place in an airtight container, Ziploc bag or under a damp towel and let rest for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the pesto. To make it in a food processor, simply combine all the ingredients except for the olive oil and process until it forms a paste. Add the olive oil little by little until it reaches your desired consistency, and season with salt and pepper. To make it with a mortar and pestle, pound the garlic and salt together first, then add the herbs. Once a brilliant green paste forms, add the nuts a few at a time. then alternate with the cheese until both are combined. Finally, thin with the olive oil to your desired consistency, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as desired. (See this excellent post for more details. Set aside.

To form the orecchiette, divide the dough into pieces. Working with one piece at a time, roll each piece into a long cylinder about half an inch in diameter, keeping the remaining pieces covered. Cut the cylinder into cubes about half an inch long.

Place the blunt side of a knife at the top of the cube of dough and press down at a slight angle, with the knife angled down away from you. The dough should form an “edge” that curls slightly over the knife. Drag the knife towards you, continuing to apply pressure, until the dough wraps around the back of the knife.

Unfold the curl and turn it inside out over your thumb to form an ‘ear’ shape. Set aside in a single layer on a baking tray until ready to cook.

Set aside in a single layer on a baking tray until ready to cook.

To cook, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. While it’s heating up, slice the sausage and panfry in a skillet with a bit of oil over medium heat until cooked through (if raw) and lightly browned. Remove from heat and set aside. If the sausage rendered grease, drain.

When the water comes to boil, add the orecchiette and simmer for about 2-3 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente and begins to float slightly. They will not float to the top, but will bob instead of sinking to the bottom. Feel free to taste as you go.

When the pasta is ready, add it to the skillet with the sausage, along with a ladleful of the pasta water. Add the pesto. Over low heat, stir until pesto evenly coats the pasta. Serve immediately, with extra Parmesan and herbs for garnish. Enjoy!

Actually, as a teenager I was more a mms and a coffee for lunch kind of girl. I’m glad I’ve grown out of it.
And yes, pesto is just the most amazing thing, and it just blends well in almost everything and I’ve made a lot of different versions.
Loved your pics 🙂
Su

This is me a little kid to a T! I was the one who always had a packet of something in the class. What can I say? I like my food now. I can not believe how perfect your pasta is and the fact you made so many! They all look the same! You are so talented 🙂

I was a school lunch kind of girl, the best day was nacho day (once a month) but I was really in it for the Little Debbie zebra cakes they gave out on those days haha. I love everything about this – the freshness, the cute little pastas, and the school memories! I want a big plate of this for lunch now. Beautiful pasta, and beautiful photos Cynthia!

Pasta and pesto is pretty much all I ate three years in a row while at university, but I love this posh version! Orechiette are one of my favourite pastas – the little ears are just so cute! And photographed beautifully by you, as always x

Haha I loved this! I was totally the packed lunch kid, and alllllways sneaked bites of lunch while in class in the morning. In fact, once I was in high school I packed my lunch with items strategically chosen for their optimal sneaking ability. I could only imagine the noses that would get turned if I had pulled out as something as lovely and fragrant as this pesto dish though – this sounds amazing! And that pasta! Brilliant. Thanks for that helpful link on how to properly use a mortar and pestle for the pesto too. Happy Wednesday to you Cynthia! <3

Cynthia, this is lovely as always. I love the way you introduce this dish. I was a school lunch person. But my bestie was a packed lunch and I used to beg her for her doritos in class. It was our secret struggle. She was a goodie two shoes though and would wait diligently until lunchtime to carefully unpack her lunch, while I waited on the lunch line for yet another tuna sandwich or oven pizza. Wah wah. Gorgeous pasta and pesto. Come cook for me!!

You made your own orecchiette!! I am so inspired now! Pesto sauce has always been one of my favourites, in fact I have a little container of freshly made pesto flecked with whole pine nuts in my fridge right now. Looking at your gorgeous photos makes me want to run to the kitchen and start making my own pasta to match the sauce… but I have a huge project due so not much cooking is happening lately. The photos look magical, Cynthia and so are your friend’s lunches. My kids don’t allow me to do anything remotely interesting for their lunches-ham and cheese sandwiches is all they want although ham is often Parma ham and cheese is always Edam. 🙂

I was totally a lunch-bringing type of kid – though I will confess, back in my high school days when my metabolism worked faster than a gazelle-hunting cheetah, I would always always always manage to eat my lunch by first period. Yeah, life choices – so I’d usually end up buying lunch, too! Can I just say that the idea of homemade pasta and pesto for lunch sounds so good right now? Because it really does! Hope you’re having a great week!

In Germany school was over at lunchtime and you went home to eat lunch. There was a lot of homework in the afternoon. We had sandwiches and a piece of fruit for snacks. Your homemade pasta looks fantastic.

Cynthia, this is seriously stunning! I love the combo of dreamy homemade pasta (and yes, orecchiette is the best isn’t it?!) with that fresh herb pesto and the savoury sausage. It sounds *so* delicious and exactly what I want for my dinner tonight.

This looks so good Cynthia! I’ve always been a packed lunch kid – my mum used to make me super cool bento boxes but now it tends to just be me whacking together some leftovers with some grains and veggies which is still good but this looks amazing! I also remember my first pesto experience too when my friend had a bursting ciabatta sandwich with halloumi and pesto – I tried it and never looked back! I also love love love pesto with chestnut mushrooms – the earthy flavours pair perfectly together!

Ooh did not know you didn’t need a pasta machine to make orechiette, must try this asap!

At my school lunch was free but it was usually pretty healthy – homecooked rice and beans + meat, veggies, salads and a dessert. Once every couple months we had McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, or chicken nugget day and it was like a mass stampede to the cafeteria. So I was so surprised when I discovered that in the US kids had cheeseburgers, pizza, chips, etc. for lunch everyday. Crazyyyy

I was totally a bring my lunch kind of kid! Well, except on chicken finger day, our school had the best chicken fingers (so much so that less kids skipped school on those days, sad right?). The vegan friendly ingredient list in the pasta dough makes me SO happy and I think I just found my weekend project : )

I grew up in Europe, so lunch was totally different. And now as a mom and foodie I send my son to school with a packed lunch. Pesto is his favourite, so you’ve got his vote 🙂
Thanks for sharing these stunning pictures. SO gorgeous.
All the best.

You are truly evil!!That dish is such a temptation and I am so hungry right now. We haven’t had our dinner but it wouldn’t matter — with that dish what we’re having is beh”. I will be making this soon.

First thought that came into my mind when I saw this post was “how much fun would it be to shape orecchiette with Cynthia right now.” You’re seriously a master orecchiette makers cause they look PERF!! Then again, I’m pretty sure you could make a used paper towel roll look good…soo…there’s that. I was right there with you and was totally a school lunch kid except for special field trip days when bentos made their appearances. Also, french bread pizza boats 5EVA. I can still clearly recall how awesome I thought those were. Especially when the little ‘pepperonis’ got extra crispy. LOL.

:O
I can’t believe these orecchiette! They are so perfect!! And dressing them with pesto is the best because it goes in all the pockets. Wow!
Actually I am happy I grew up in a culture where packed lunch pretty much does not exist at school. Ha! I had lunch at home. But I love to bring my own food to work 🙂

I usually also just bought my lunch at school but when my mom did pack it, I always had an American cheese sandwich with white bread and margine (looking back now….eeewwwww?!?!). Also, I would have never known what pesto was at that age!

These photos are incredible, Cynthia! As always, your styling is perfection.
And hahah, when I attended school I always had a packed lunch. I was so envious of the kids that were served fresh, hot meals everyday. The grass is always greener, right….

Cynthia, this is the best!!!! it’s so cute and beautiful and it feels like we’re having lunch together on a rainy day. 😀 I especially love that picture of your hand pressing indentations on the little orecchietes. And do you remember my post several months back about Asian lunches at school? I think I was so traumatized as a child I had a serious aversion to packing anything before I hit college. Mainly because I didn’t want to stink up the place, but also because everything American/Mexican at school sounded more appealing than stale Korean food, since all we had in the fridge was kimchi and a bunch of Korean ingredients. If I wanted a sandwich it would be bread, mayo, Oscar Mayer ham (and not the soft kind). Hah! And that part about chewing furiously is too cute. I can imagine a cute little/young Cynthia doing that with a mischievous look on the face. 😉

LOL I can totally relate. I almost always bought my lunches at school too, and I envied classmates who had packed lunches. This dish screams spring and is so dreamy. The stylish is so incredibly gorgeous, as always. When I look at these photos, I imagine you in an herb forest, making pesto in a woodsy kitchen hehe

Beautiful as always. The fold down zip lock without the zip totally brought me back to my PJ & J sandwich days! 🙂 And Oh my goodness – the things we thought we were getting away in high school. I bet the teachers so knew. I look at kids now and see how they try to either trick me and most of the time I let it go and let them have the thrill of “getting away” and I always think… man… this was what the adults saw when I was their age 🙂

I was totally a lunch buyer, but we always snuck off campus for lunch (is it sneaking if it’s allowed?). However, I DID spend an exorbitant amount of my lunch money buying a loaf of french bread with a BOWL of ranch dressing to dip it in almost every day of freshman year during our morning snack break. If my mom ever packed me a pesto sandwich, I’d think she was a lunch packing wizard too! This is the prettiest orecchiette I’ve ever seen and I’m in awe that you did it all by hand!

Hello ! wild garlic is still in season here in the UK and I am lucky that I can find some in the forest near me. (Even luckier than nobody else seems interested in foraging for wild garlic) Pesto I made. Orecchiette I prepared following your recipe and a great meal my family had. Thanks ! I am equally glad that it was a cold and grey day when I prepared the orecchiette because as I wasn’t able to go outside, I started the pasta early at 5 pm. It took me almost 90 minutes to shape all those little ears !!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2 minutes to boil, 1 minute to eat – I know I know : I should eat more slowly…

This is so perfect! I was just thinking of going to a special store for some fun-shaped pasta, and i find your recipe that leaves me breathless! Why buy when you can make your own, especially since we never eat pasta, so extra efford will make only better! I am a little bit concerned that there is no egg in the recipe. Oh, well, i guess just need to try it out 🙂
I wish kids now would eat all this beautiful colors, would of gladly made fun colorful lunches, but all my boys want is cheese sandwiches.

Hi Sarah — wow, Japan!!! You can use all-purpose instead if that’s all you have. The pasta won’t be quite the same — more like the skins of boiled Asian dumplings, if that makes sense — but should still work. I hope you enjoy!